Lots of activity in Phillies land over the last few days. Raul Ibanez is in, Pat Burrell is out. Chan Ho Park is in, and now Jamie Moyer is back.

For my money, the re-signing of Moyer to a 2 year deal is a better move than throwing tens of millions of dollars at Derek Lowe. The Phils have multiple starting pitching prospects who could be ready in time for the 2011 season once Moyer’s contract expires. Keeping Moyer on for 2 more years takes the pressure off the Phillies from having to rush Carrasco or Drabek’s development. The emergence of J.A. Happ opens up the possibility that the Phils starting rotation would be Hamels/Myers/Blanton/Moyer/Happ. I am comfortable going into 2009 with that rotation. Having Park available for spot starting and long relief will be a nice insurance policy against injury as well.

Chase Utley met with the media today to discuss his rehab from hip surgery, and everything sounds good. Chase is talking big right now, targeting a return to the diamond for mid-spring training and being the Opening Day second baseman for the Fightin’s.

Park is signed for 1 year at $2.5 million with incentives
that could push it higher. Park said that the Phillies told him that they see him as a starter, but I see it as pretty unlikely that he’d find a home in the rotation.

Back to Burrell – Paul Hagen spoke to Pat over the weekend and has a great article up about their conversation. It’s pretty obvious that the Phils had zero desire to bring Pat back. I’ve yet to see a single account that states that Burrell traded numbers with the Phillies after the World Series. It sounds like he never even got the chance:

Even while actively seeking his replacement, club officials never said out loud that they didn’t want their longest-tenured player back. Didn’t say they did, either. Just decided not to offer arbitration and went about the business of not having substantive discussions with the first overall draft pick in 1998, the leftfielder they once viewed as the face of their franchise.

Hagen also spoke with Greg Dobbs, who played with Ibanez in Seattle and endorsed the signing:

“I was sorry to see Pat [Burrell] go, as a teammate and a friend. He meant a lot to this team. But, by the same token, there comes a time when you have to turn the page. And by bringing in Raul, I definitely think we’ve filled that void. He’s just a great guy to have in the clubhouse.”

He wasn’t the only one to seem ok with Pat’s exit. Utley said at his press conference, according to Scott Lauber at The News Journal:

He kind of took me under his wing when I first got to the big leagues and showed me the ropes. But, again, you have to understand this is business. The whole point is to continue to win.”

Asked about the Phillies’ lefty-loaded lineup, Utley said, “I think left-handed hitters are really good hitters.” Then, he looked toward his manager at the back of the room. “Charlie, you’re a left-hander, right? Were you a good hitter?”

Interesting choices of words from Dobbs and Utley. “There comes a time when you have to turn the page”. “The whole point is to continue to win”. It sounds like Ruben Amaro Jr. wasn’t the only one who thought the Burrell era needed to end.